Art journey from Lowell to Madrid

Loaned Whistler works remind U.S. ambassador how far he's come

"I was inspired to bring this to my office so every day I could be reminded of my history," said James Costos, U.S. ambassador to Spain and Andorra, shown in his Madrid office. Behind him are six etchings by James McNeill Whistler loaned from Lowell's Whistler House Museum of Art. See video at lowellsun.com.
PHOTO / ADDIE B. SCHROEDER

LOWELL -- When James Costos visited the Whistler House Museum of Art as a child, he had no idea that decades later he would have six famous James Abbott McNeill Whistler etchings hanging behind his office desk in the U.S. embassy in Madrid.

Now the U.S. ambassador to Spain and Andorra, Costos uses the art to tell visitors about his roots in Lowell, and send the message to young, aspiring Spanish artists that anything is possible.

The etchings are on loan from the Whistler House through a program run by the State Department's Art in Embassies Program. When Costos became aware of the program, he phoned federal officials and knew exactly what art he wanted to pursue for his office.

"These are like our babies. You get attached," said Sara Bogosian, the Whistler House Museum of Art's president and executive director, looking over copies of the six Whistler etchings on display at the Lowell museum. The originals are on loan to the U.S. embassy in Madrid after a request by U.S. Ambassador and Lowell native James Costos. See video at lowellsun.com. SUN / JOHN LOVE

The Art in Embassies program was created by first lady Jacqueline Kennedy in the early 1960s. Kennedy wanted to start a conversation in embassies that didn't alienate people, something that politics had the potential to do. Art seemed a natural, friendly topic.

Upon being appointed ambassador by President Barack Obama in 2013, Costos and his team began a search to adorn the Madrid Embassy with art. They tracked down work by Josef Albers, a painting from Barcelona, and photographs to accompany the Whistler etchings.

All the pieces help Costos, 52, extend his conversation about art, but the Whistler etchings have a personal meaning.

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"I was inspired to bring this to my office so every day I could be reminded of my history, because you should never forget that," Costos said in a recent telephone interview from the embassy.

Costos said he considers his upbringing to be "a true American story." His grandparents emigrated from Greece and his parents met in Lowell. Costos was born in the Highlands neighborhood, and his father worked tirelessly to bring the family up from the lower middle class, he said.

A copy of one of James McNeill Whistler's six etchings on display at the Lowell museum. The originals are in U.S. Ambassador James Costos' office in Madrid on loan.
SUN / JOHN LOVE

Costos attended Lowell High School and graduated from UMass Lowell in 1985 with a degree in political science and economics -- the first in his family to graduate college. He left Lowell for New York a year or two later.

The etchings have become symbolic of Costos' journey, he said.

"They sit behind my desk and I come in every morning and I have an opportunity to admire them," he said. "Every person that visits me, I tell them my little story and how honored I am to have these historical pieces to remind me of how far I've come."

When he called the Whistler House to ask about loaning the etchings, Costos said the conversation was as surprising to him as it was to Sara Bogosian, Whistler House's president and executive director.

Bogosian thought the call was a prank. And for Costos, it was surreal.

"I'm calling a place where I grew up, where I had never thought that I would be an ambassador," he said.

The art house loaned Costos the etchings, which were hanging in a room on the second floor -- the room where James Whistler was born in 1834. The embassy will have the etchings until Costos' ambassadorship ends in January 2017, and for now the Whistler House has copies of the etchings on display.

Sending the valuable originals on a journey across the Atlantic Ocean was tough at first.

"These are like our babies," Bogosian said. "You get attached."

For that reason, there was some hesitation from the board of directors.

But Costos thinks the impression the Whistler House left on him as a child helped.

"When I was able to call Sara and tell her that story, I think it was able to help inspire the board to make this loan," he said.

Ultimately, Sara and the board decided this was an opportunity too good to pass up.

"What it does is not only bring recognition to the Whistler House, but it also brings recognition to Lowell," Bogosian said.

In fact, an article in Architectural Digest mentioned the Whistler House and Costo's memory of his childhood visit.

For the ambassador, being a part of this program and helping to bring Lowell into the spotlight is an honor, he said.

Bogosian plans to visit the U.S. embassy in February or March to see how the etchings look on display.

Until her visit, thinking about the many sets of eyes that get to see the etchings is thrilling for Bogosian.

"He's meeting with dignitaries from around the world," Bogosian said.

Costos said he hopes to visit the Whistler House when the etchings return, a homecoming for both himself and the art.

"Having this Whistler here really does help me tell this American story of how far people can go," Costos said. "I'm very proud of where I came from."

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